In certain cities, citizens who are not experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 are now getting tested, according to CNN.
This type of testing is crucial to determining how widespread the pandemic is, especially with many locations currently planning to reopen or relax shelter-in-place orders.
For instance, Texas is planning to allow its order to expire on April 30, according to the New York Times. Certain states have already begun the reopening process, including Alaska and Georgia.
However, other locations, such as the San Mateo County, have extended their shelter-in-place order. San Mateo County’s is now set to expire at the end of May, according to ABC7. Previously, it was to expire May 3.
Support for these actions is mixed, as certain people are calling for the end of these shelter-in-place orders. Some protests have sparked in the face of these regulations. According to MarketWatch, Elon Musk, the co-founder of Tesla, recently tweeted in favor of reopening America.
Musk said,“Give people their freedom back!”
In the face of the growing support for reopening, some experts see potential disastrous consequences. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said it is inevitable that there will be a second wave of coronavirus, according to USA Today.
Unless strong measures are taken, Fauci believes the second wave will cause a bad fall and winter. It could be especially dangerous since the potential second wave will overlap with the flu season.
As many places look to reopen, Los Angeles, one of the hardest-hit cities in California, is testing asymptomatic essential workers starting April 30, according to KTLA.
The need for testing is provoked by statistics suggesting that up to 50% of COVID-19 cases could be asymptomatic, according to Healthline. The problem with this is that despite the infected individuals feeling completely healthy and normal, they are contagious and can spread the disease, causing many more severe cases that are not asymptomatic.
Currently, testing is not available in San Mateo County for those who do not have symptoms.
